Return of King Arthur
by fanfreak-7
Summary: What were to happen when Arthur returns in the 21st Century? What's Merlin been up to over the years and how will the reunited duo help to protect Albion and bring back magic in these modern times? Contains some Whump on Arthur and Merlin, Merlin/Freya later on, and an OC. Merthur Bromance mostly but Romance if you wear goggles. Rated T to be safe.
1. Return of Arthur

**Disclaimer: I do not in any way own the rights to Merlin whatsoever. Believe me, if I did, it would have ended differently.**

**Now that I've got that out of the way, hello!**

**I've written plenty of fanfiction before but this is my first Merlin fic. I was rewatching Merlin when I thought about what would happen when Arthur was to return. And I just had to do this. But I don't do it alone. All the writing is mine but one of my dearest friends is helping me creating the plot lines and some of the characters as well.**

**By her recommendation, a version of my self will be in it, but she won't appear till chapter two. Also, this can kind of be considered a crossover but not entirely. Tom Hopper who played the amazing Sir Percival was also a one episode character in Doctor Who and it was decided that he will be joining the plot later on. I've got something in mind for it. **

**Be warned, this is going to be a long one. I plan on making it at least 50 chapters long with plenty of feels. It's going to include Arthur, Merlin, and others going on different adventures in the 21st century as well as little snippets here and there of Merlin during his long wait for Arthur's return. **

**Anyway, even of this long explanation, here's the first chapter!**

* * *

><p>2014. At least 1600 years had passed since the battle at Camlann. And Merlin lived through them all. Assisting every king and queen in any way that he could, even if they wouldn't listen to him. Merlin was a changed man as he sat in the grass, looking towards Avalon. Over the years, he'd learned to change his appearance as he wished from old to young with ease. As he felt in his heart that today was the day for his friend to return, he looked as he did all those years ago. The only change was attire.<p>

A black t-shirt underneath a black leather jack, with matching jeans and boots. Though he appeared young, his eyes showed the many years he'd lived. After two more hours, his wait was finally over. Ten feet in front of him, a glimmer of armor appeared and Arthur could be seen lying on his back. It looked as if time had not touched the king. The hole in his chainmail where Mordred had struck was still there, but the fatal wound was gone.

Though unconscious, Arthur breathed slowly as Merlin ran towards his friend. The bag he was carrying landed with a soft thud as he knelt beside Arthur's sleeping form, waiting for him to wake. A few more minutes and the king stirred, his eyes fluttering open.

"Merlin?"

"Welcome back, Arthur." Merlin smiled. The king looked over and took in Merlin's appearance, a look of confusion crossing his face.

"What the hell are you wearing?"

The warlock rolled his eyes. "Clothes. Speaking of which…." Merlin opened his back pack and began to pull out a pair of blue jeans. "We need to change yours. Can't be walking around dressed like that."

Arthur quickly became even more confused. "And why the hell not?"

"We don't need everyone asking where the Renaissance Fair is." Merlin commented lightly, a smirk playing on his lips at the joke that Arthur clearly would not understand.

"The what?"

"Nothing." The warlock couldn't hold back the small chuckle as he laid out the new clothes for Arthur to wear.

"What happened? The last thing I remember…I was dying." Arthur muttered slowly, sitting up. His hand went to the hole in his armor, discovering no wound. "Did you-?"

"No. You….erm….." Merlin thought carefully about how he was going to tell him. "You died…..1600 years ago." Arthur tensed, eyes wide as he looked at the warlock and his heart skipped a beat. He was at a complete loss for words. Merlin gently put a hand on the king's shoulder. "Arthur?"

"I…..ex-explain." he muttered, looking up at Merlin."

"You died and you were to return when Albion needed you most. I've been waiting this entire time and now you're back."

"You…you've been waiting for over a thousand years? Right here?" Merlin again rolled his eyes.

"Well no. Not _right here_. But in general, yes. Been helping where I can. It…hasn't been easy."

"Meaning?"

"Nothing. It can wait. Let's get you changed and we can ride to my place and talk." Merlin helped Arthur up and helped him changed as the king was more than confused about modern clothes and didn't know what a zipper was. Once finished, he was wearing regular jeans, a gray t-shirt, and a red hoodie that zipped up. "There. Now you look normal." Merlin commented as he shouldered the bag and picked up the discarded armor and chainmail.

"Personally I think I look ridiculous. Now where are the horses?" Arthur asked, fussing with the strings on the hoodie. Merlin gave him a confused look for a moment before remembering.

"Oh, right. Horses…yeah. This way." He started walking off as Arthur followed. Parked down the road was a blue Honda CR-V. Arthur paused as Merlin pulled keys from his pocket and unlocked it, tossing the armor in the back. Merlin looked back at Arthur and smiled. "Come on."

Hesitantly, the king walked up to the car. "It's no horse, but it's faster. It's called a car. Get in front." Merlin informed him as a phone started to ring. "Oh, hold on. Gotta take this." Arthur slowly sat in the passenger seat, watching his friend as he took out the ringing phone and answered it. "Hello? Yeah, everything's fine. Already took care of it. About that, I've got some news. I'll tell you when I get back. Yeah. Alright, see you then." Merlin put the phone away and got into the driver's seat.

Arthur simply looked at him, not quite sure what was going on. Merlin smiled and clicked on his seatbelt slowly, so Arthur could do the same. After a little help with the buckling part, Arthur too had his seatbelt on and preceded to clear his throat, looking at Merlin pointedly. It was clear that the king was waiting for an explanation for Merlin having a conversation with an odd device. "Oh, sorry. That was my apprentice…"

Merlin pulled the phone back out and showed it to Arthur. "It's called a phone. It's not magic, but it's a form of…communication. I just dial-sorry press the numbers to call someone and I can talk to them with it." After a moment Arthur nodded, somewhat understanding before giving his friend a quizzical look.

"Apprentice? You're teaching someone how to….use magic?" he asked, watching Merlin carefully.

"Yes. And she's really good. She's just….you'll find out." Merlin commented. Arthur was about to respond when a plane flew overhead, low enough to shake the car lightly. Jumping in his seat and looking out the window, Arthur's eyes widened dramatically.

"Merlin! What is that great metal beast?!"

"What?" Merlin paused as he hardly noticed the disturbance of the plane and looked out at what Arthur was pointing at. "Oh. Oh yeah. Dangerous that it. It can eat hundreds of people at a time." he teased, causing Arthur to look at him with a horrified expression. After a silent moment, Merlin broke out laughing. "Oh, come off it! I'm only joking. It's harmless. Not even a beast. It's an airplane. It's another form of transport. Like this car."

"Wait. Hold on. Are you telling me there's people inside that thing?!" Merlin nodded and started the car, the sound of which made Arthur jump again. "Damn it, Merlin! A little warning next time! I nearly died of fright!"

"Wow. You're really going to love the 21st Century." Merlin noted sarcastically. It took almost an hour or so for Arthur to calm down and get used to the feeling of riding in the car. By that time, they'd reached the southern outer limits of London. Trading the countryside for the busy city. Arthur quickly became occupied by looking out the window, taking in all the unfamiliar sites.

Eventually, he settled to leaning back in the seat as he watched the cars driving next to them and the people along the city streets. "What happened, Merlin?"

"To Camelot? Or to everything?"

"Both…I guess."

Merlin took a moment to think. "Eventually, Camelot fell to Saxons. Few hundred years after you died. There's been plagues and wars across Europe. The discovery of the New World, Salem witch trials, revolutions, two world wars. All the while inventions have grown. In one century alone, we advanced from horses to trains, to cars and planes. Phones, television. And a lot of….other things….." Merlin drifted off, trying to think how he was going to explain to Arthur all that happened over the centuries. If he were to be honest, he wanted to leave it to his apprentice. She knows her history and there were some things that Merlin just wanted to forget.

Arthur watched Merlin for a moment and gave a small sigh. It was clear that his friend had been through a lot, even if he wouldn't outright say it. Which he never did. "So….this apprentice of yours. What's her name?"

* * *

><p><strong>There you go! Not much, but I thought it was good. Next chapter will be uploaded ASAP once I finish and edit it. Please leave a review telling me what you think! I'll also take recommendations and suggestions on things!<strong>


	2. The Apprentice

**Here's the new chapter! I really like this one and I think it turned out really well. **

**I think I forgot about this last chapter so...Disclaimer: Merlin is not mine. (wish it were)**

* * *

><p>"Margaret. Her name's Margaret." Merlin smiled, grateful for the change of subject. "She can be difficult at times but she means well. And she has a good heart, even though it can be hard to see at times. You'll see. She grows on you." he explained.<p>

"She sounds great. A bit like you actually." Arthur commented with a small smile. "So, how long has been your apprentice?" he asked, still trying to wrap his head around the idea. For Arthur, a few days ago, Merlin was his servant and just found out about his magical abilities and then died in his arms. Now, over a thousand years had passed in the blink of an eye and Merlin seemed to have a completely different. Even an apprentice.

"A few years." Arthur gave a small nod. In a way, he was still trying to accept magic. He had already accepted it with Merlin. But other people?

"And you trust her?" The question fell from his lips before he'd had a chance to think about it. Arthur turned to look at Merlin who spared him a glance before his eyes went back to the road.

"With my life." Again, Arthur found himself nodding and returned to looking out the window. He watched everything pass by with critical eyes, hoping to see something familiar in any way. But with no such luck. Even the street were foreign to him. The only thing remotely familiar was Merlin. And even he was not the same.

The silence between them was suddenly screaming at him. Even at the worst of times, Merlin had something to say. Most of the time it was something stupid or obvious, but at least it was something.

Looking at him now, Arthur could tell that his friend was lost in thought. But more so, he could see the slight differences in Merlin. First of all, he wasn't smiling. In fact, he looked almost worried. The way he was seated looked relaxed but Arthur could tell that he was tense. His raven black hair was a bit longer than he remembered. And his eyes. It wasn't just the age he could see in them, but the way they were darting around, examining every passing car, every person crossing the street. Arthur couldn't help but to wonder what the hell had happened.

Then again, it wasn't like Merlin would say. He never did. Arthur wasn't completely stupid. He knew Merlin would rather bottle things up rather than say something was bothering him.

"Idiot."

"Prat." Merlin responded automatically. A small smile appeared on his face, sparing Arthur another glance. Arthur let out a small sigh of relief and chuckled.

"Good. Glad that's not changed."

* * *

><p>"Good. Glad that's not changed." Merlin glanced at Arthur again, raising his eyebrow slightly. After a brief moment, he let out a small sigh. He quickly realized how overwhelming all of this must be and he wasn't exactly helping matters.<p>

"Sorry. Just…..a lot on my mind."

"I can tell. I've never seen you this quiet." Arthur commented, looking out the window once more. The busy city was winding down into the suburbs. Two and three story houses were lining the streets. "Where are we going?"

"I've got a house on the north side of London. I live there with my apprentice. We'll clear up one of the spare rooms for you." Arthur couldn't help but laugh a little. Merlin looked at him curiously with a small smile. "What?"

'Just you. Owning a house."

"I don't really own it. The royal family has been housing me in different places for centuries. It's no Buckingham Palace, but it's bigger than what I had in Camelot and it's free so I don't complain." Merlin explained.

"Buckingham Palace?"

"It's where the Queen lives when she's not at Windsor. We passed it a few miles back." Turning left, Merlin slowed to a stop in front of an elaborate two story home. A bed of green grass with a stone path led up to it. A few vines snaked up the sides and gave it a warm and homely feel. "Here it is." Merlin unbuckled and got out, Arthur following. Getting the armor out of the back of the car, he led the fair haired king up to the front door. Not bothering with a king, Merlin's eyes flashed gold and the door opened.

Inside, a white walled hallway led to an open spaced living room with a large tan two piece sofa winding against the corner facing a flat screen tv on the wall. On the sofa, reading a book, was a young reddish blonde haired girl. She looked to be in her early twenties and was dressed in skinny jeans and a red tank top with a black jacket. She didn't bother to look up as they entered the room.

"Took you long enough. I was starting to worry." she muttered sarcastically with an American accent. Merlin rolled his eyes as he walked over to her, tossing the armor to a spot next to her.

"Hello to you too." Merlin smiled before glancing at Arthur. "I've got a surprise." At this, she looked up from her book, eyes flickering between the two men in front of her. Arthur was almost startled at how blue they were. The irises were like an icy sky with streaks of deep blue forcing their way to the center. "This, is Arthur." Merlin held out him hands out as if to say 'ta da', a bright smile on his face.

"Weasley?" Merlin scoffed, dropping his arms exasperatedly.

"No. Why would it be Arthur Weasley? This isn't bloody Hogwarts!" he commented, running a hand through his hair. "It's Arthur Pendragon." Arthur gave a small wave of greeting and she smiled slightly, putting the book down and standing up. She walked up to Arthur and sized him up.

"I thought he'd be taller." she noted. Merlin audibly sighed and walked over to them.

"Arthur, this is Margaret. A constant thorn in my side." Margaret smiled and held out her hand to Arthur which he gladly took.

"I'm only pulling his leg as usual. I'm his apprentice. I've already got one of the rooms ready for you." Merlin looked at her for a moment.

"But….you didn't even know that he was coming." Margaret sighed at this.

"On the phone, when I asked if he had come back yet, you said you had some news." she stated as if it were obvious. "There's really only one thing that could mean. Sometimes it amazes me that you're the greatest wizard to walk the Earth, because there's moments when you're just bone dead stupid."

Arthur smiled and laughed, looking at Merlin. "I like her."

* * *

><p><strong>And there's chapter two! Hope you all enjoyed it. As always, reviews are adored and suggestions are accepted. I've already received several suggestions that I thought were really good and I'm thinking about using them. <strong>

**Anyway, I'll update soon with chapter 3. Promise!**


	3. Settling In Part I

**I know it's a bit late, so I do apologize for that. This chapter was actually a little difficult to write so I've decided to split it into two parts. The second part will be uploaded within the next week or so. Anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Merlin, wish that I did.**

* * *

><p>"Tell you what. I'll let you two get to know each other, and I'll make sure the room is set up how he likes." Merlin commented.<p>

"Upstairs. Second bedroom on the left." Merlin muttered his thanks before heading up the stairs. "While he does that, how about I make you some food. I assume you're hungry?" Arthur nodded, suddenly realizing that he was. Though it made sense. He hadn't eaten anything in over a thousand years.

"Starving, actually." Margaret smiled and led him to a large kitchen that opened up into a dining room. She gestured for Arthur to sit at the table before walking over to the fridge.

"It's almost noon so I was about to make lunch anyway. What would you like?"

"Anything is fine." She nodded and started taking out lunch meats.

"Would you like some coffee?" Margaret asked, looking over with a mischievous glint in her eye.

"Coffee?"

"Oh, right. Must not have had that in Camelot. It's a drink." she smiled, holding the pot up, gesturing to the dark liquid.

"Oh…..sure." he smiled.

"Since you've never had it before, I'll dull down the taste." she smiled back, pouring some into a mug. Margaret then pulled out some cream and four lumps of sugar, adding it to the drink. Hiding her smirk with a polite smile, she walked over to the table and handed it to him. "Careful, it's a bit hot." Margaret warned before going back to the kitchen to prepare lunch.

Arthur nodded his thanks and took a hesitant sip. The hot liquid coursed down his throat pleasantly, leaving a sweet taste with a slight bitter twinge. "It's a bit different. But it's good." he noted, drinking more. Margaret was just finishing the ham sandwiches when there was nothing left of the coffee. Arthur fidgeted as she placed a plate with two sandwiches in front of him. He found that he couldn't sit still all of sudden. Taking a large bite of food, he smiled, and was practically shaking in his chair. "It's good." he muttered quickly.

Margaret was literally holding her breath to stop herself from laughing. Just then, Merlin called their names from the base of the stairs. "In here!" she called back and set out a plate for him and herself before sitting down to eat her lunch. Merlin walked in and observed the scene in front of him and gave Margaret a stern look, much like Gaius used to give him. "What?" she asked, feigning innocence, still trying not to laugh. Arthur looked between the two as he ate, bouncing in his seat. Merlin just stared at Margaret, folding his arms across his chest.

"What did you give him?" He walked over to Arthur and looked into the now empty mug. "Coffee? Seriously?"

"It was good, I feel great." Arthur sputtered out rapidly, finishing his food. "I could-I could run for miles." Margaret let out a small, strangled laugh, turning her head away.

"You didn't tell him about the caffeine did you? He's going to be bouncing off the walls for hours."

"It was just one cup of coffee…" she tried, still stifling laughter at the site of Arthur looking between them, unable to sit still for one second.

"One of your cups of coffee. First time I had your coffee, I was twitching for almost a week." Merlin noted, ignoring her quiet comment of 'go big or go home'. "Alright, we're going to the living room. Gotta do something with him." Arthur jumped up and followed Merlin out. Margaret took a few more bites of her sandwich before doing the same. In the living room, Merlin sat Arthur on the couch and turned on the TV. He then pulled out three controllers and Margaret scoffed.

"Mario Kart? Are you serious?"

"It's simple and it'll keep him occupied. Now sit." Margaret did as he said, watching him turn on the game before handing each of them a controller, taking a seat between her and Arthur.

"What's this?" Arthur asked quickly, looking curiously at the device. It took several minutes for Merlin to explain everything to him, mostly because he was too hyped on caffeine to really pay attention to anything Merlin was saying. After Arthur was able to understand the basics and what he was doing, Merlin started the game. To make it interesting, Margaret decided to choose Rainbow Road. Which caused Arthur's character to fall off the track literally every two seconds. But luckily enough, it was in fact using all his energy from the coffee; what with him jumping up and down, shouting, and ranting at how difficult the game was. Eventually, after several hours of 'Oh! Not again!'s and 'Merlin! That's not fair, your person is bigger!, Arthur was finally crashing from the caffeine high. The effect of which made his driving even worse than before if that was possible. Another half hour and Arthur's leaned against Merlin, his head lolling onto the warlock's shoulder, fast asleep.

"You're never giving him coffee again." Merlin scolded Margaret lightly, who was smiling at the pair as she took the controllers and turned the game off. "Help me get him to his new bed." The two of them half dragged, half carried Arthur up the stairs and into the room that had been prepared for him. It was decently sized with dark blue walls lined with a few shelves and large windows that faced the city. The view of which was currently blocked by thick curtains that matched the walls. Instead of a wardrobe, there was a walk-in closet. A large bed, nearly equal to the one he had in Camelot took up only a quarter of the room. On the wall opposite the bed was a deep brown dresser. On either side of the bed were two bedside tables. There was nothing on them and all the shelves were empty but the closet was full of clothes and shoes and the dressers drawers were filled with socks and underwear.

With Margaret's help, Merlin dressed Arthur in a pair of red pajamas and threw his dirty clothes in a hamper that was right next to the closet. Once that was done, they settled him into bed, pulling the covers over him. Throughout all this, Arthur hardly stirred and curled beneath the blankets, unaware of the two sorcerers watching him.

"He's going to need help adjusting to everything, you know." Margaret commented, glancing at Merlin. He simply stared at Arthur's sleeping form, only giving a small nod. He carried a slightly worried look on his face as watched his slumbering friend. Knowing that look all too well, Margaret gave a small sigh and walked over to Merlin. "What's wrong? He's back, I thought you'd be happy about that."

"I am. It's just…..." Merlin took a moment, contemplating how to word what he was thinking. "Him being back. That means Albion's time of greatest need…." Margret nodded, immediately understanding.

"You're worried things are about to get much worse than ever before?" Merlin nodded, still not taking his eyes off of Arthur. But she knew there was more to it than that. Margaret pulled him into a warm embrace, rubbing his back soothingly. He gratefully accepted the hug, tearing his eyes from Arthur's sleeping form and hiding his face in her shoulder. "No matter how bad it gets Merlin, we'll get through it. It's your destiny to help Arthur create Albion. To guide and watch over him."

"Yeah, because I did such a good job last time." There it was. "I got him killed, Margaret." He responded into her shoulder, trying to hide the breaking of his voice.

"No. Merlin, you didn't."

"But Mordred-"

"No. Merlin, stop that. He was just a child when you were warned about him. You had no choice but to let him live." she countered quickly, already knowing the argument he'd constructed against himself. "What Mordred did was his own doing, not yours. You need to stop blaming yourself for others mistakes."

Merlin didn't say anything but nodded his head slowly, knowing that she was right.

* * *

><p>Arthur woke at 3am in an unfamiliar bed, wearing unfamiliar clothes in pitch black. He let out a panicked breath, sitting up quickly before the last days events came back to him. Now that he was alone, an overwhelming sense of grief washed over him. Leaning back into the soft sheets, the tears rolled down his face without stop. The reality of it all hit him. Camelot was gone. Everyone was gone. Dead. Nothing but dust. And there was nothing left of what he once knew. Nothing but Merlin and himself. A few strangled sobs escaped him and he let his emotions run free. As king, and a royal all his life, he'd learned to bury his feeling. But the grief he felt was so overwhelming. Besides, Camelot was gone. He wasn't a king anymore as there was nothing to be king of, so why bother to be proper and an example to others by hiding his emotions and not showing weakness. There was no reason for it anymore. Arthur lost track of time as the sobs racked his body and he grieved the loss of everything, everyone he once knew when a soft, almost hesitant knock came at the door to the room. Taking a moment to try and compose himself, he sat up in the bed, wiping the tears away with his hands.<p>

"Y-Yes?" He couldn't really see anything but he heard the faint click of the door opening.

"Arthur?" came a soft voice in an accent he couldn't place, American he would later discover, and recognized it as Merlin's apprentice, Margaret.

"Come in." The door closed and he heard her slow footsteps and the room lit up as she flicked the switch, turning the lights on, nearly blinding him as his eyes had become accustomed to the dark night. Margaret stood near the door wearing fuzzy deep blue pajamas and matching bunny slippers, her red hair done up in a ponytail. Arthur sat straighter on the bed, resting his back against the headboard.

"My room's right next to yours. I….I heard you." she commented slowly, looking a bit uncomfortable. Most likely due to the fact that she didn't know him all that much, he figured. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." he lied horribly, his voice cracking. "I'm sorry to have woken you."

"You didn't." Margaret reassured him as she slowly walked over to the bed and sat on the edge of it. "And no, you're not." she corrected with a small smile. "You woke up over a thousand years after dying in your friends arms, everything has changed, everyone you knew is gone, and nothing is familiar to you." she noted softly. "No one would be fine."

"You're very perceptive."

"It's a gift." she joked and Arthur gave a small laugh.

"Where's Merlin?"

"Asleep. Two doors down. It's around 3:30 in the morning so he won't be awake for several more hours." Margaret explained.

"How come you're up, then?" Arthur asked, looking at her curiously.

"Couldn't sleep, so I decided to study."

"Study magic, right?" he questioned, trying to hide his worry at the idea. She simply nodded. "If…..you don't mind my asking, why did you decide to study magic?" Margaret smiled softly at the question.

"Just sort of happened. I got myself into trouble a few years back. And Merlin saved my life. With magic. After that, he took me in, started to teach me and show me a better way to live. At first….I wanted to use magic to get revenge." Arthur visibly shifted uncomfortably at that but she continued. "But he stopped me. Taught me what it should be used for. I owe him everything." She explained, looking down at her hands the whole time, fidgeting slightly. After a moment, Margaret looked up at him, her blue eyes staring into his. "It's good that you're back. He may be worried, but he really missed you." Arthur paused at that.

"He's worried. About what?"

"You, mostly. He feels he failed you at Camlann and he's terrified that he'll do so again."

"Merlin didn't fail me. What happened….happened. I don't blame him."

"But he blames himself. After everything he did, everything he went through, and in the end, he couldn't protect you." Arthur gave her a confused look. "You…have no clue what all he's done for you, do you? All he's sacrificed." He shook his head.

* * *

><p><strong>And there it is! As always, reviews are adored and welcome at all times! And if you have suggestions my inbox is always open. Next chapter coming soon!<strong>

**xxx**


	4. Settling In Part II

**Sorry this one took a bit longer than usual but I promise it's worth it. Longest chapter so far and I plan t make them this long in the future. This one's got some feels as well as more background between Margaret and Merlin so you understand more about their relationship. Warning: Tiny bit of Merlin!Whump in this chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I sadly down own Merlin.**

* * *

><p>Merlin didn't wake up till 9 in the morning. For a moment he just laid there in bed as he always did until he remembered one thing. One thing that immediately put a smile on his face. Arthur's alive. He jumped out of bed, quickly dressing in an old pair of jeans and a gray button up before heading down stairs. Arthur was sitting on the couch, already dressed, and was talking to Margaret when he entered the living room. Arthur looked up and put on his best King posture.<p>

"Up late as usual, M_er_lin?" the warlock the in question rolled his eyes as Margaret let out a small laugh.

"What are you two talking about?" Merlin asked without answering Arthur's taunt.

"You." Margaret responded, standing up and walking over to him. "Breakfast is in the kitchen and he's got a lot of questions for you." she warned, starting to head up the stairs.

"And where are you going?" he questioned, watching her. She paused, obviously not wanting to say before slowly turning around to face him.

"Did I not tell you?" she asked innocently. "I've….kinda got a date." Arthur raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. "In about two hours so I better g-"

"A date?" Merlin asked, staring at her. "You never said anything about a date. Have I met him? What's his name? Where does he work? Where'd you meet-"

"Merlin." She stopped him, rolling her eyes. "This is why I didn't say anything. His name's Jeff. No you haven't and it's none of your business."

"I want to know-"

"Merlin." This time it was Arthur who had spoken. He stood up and walked over to them. "I'm sure it's fine. She's an adult, yes? Get off her back. Besides, like she said, I've got a lot of questions for you so let's leave her to get ready and go to the kitchen." Margaret had taken the time that Arthur talked to mouth a thank you to him before running up the stairs to avoid further interrogation. Before Merlin had a chance to argue, Arthur grabbed him arm and pulled him to the kitchen. "You've got a lot of explaining to do." Merlin grumbled slightly but followed him to the kitchen. Arthur sat down at the table as the warlock helped himself to some eggs and sausages that were on the stove before sitting across from him.

"What all did she tell you?" Merlin asked accusingly but Arthur stopped him from continuing any further.

"She told me that you'd sacrificed a lot for me and I asked her what she meant. She didn't go into much detail though." Merlin nodded slowly. "I think…..perhaps if you start from the beginning. To make it easier." Arthur suggested. And so he does. Merlin slowly begins to tell him everything as he mindlessly picks at his breakfast, occasionally taking a bite when Arthur stop him to ask a question. Starts off with how he was born with magic, coming to Camelot, meeting the dragon. Arthur quickly figured out that it was Merlin who had set him free and they exchanged words until another realization crossed Arthur as Merlin mentioned him being a Dragonlord and stopping Kilgarrah. "Balinor…..he….Merlin don't tell me he was…" Merlin nodded his head, confirming what Arthur was thinking. "I told you no man was worth your tears."

"It's fine, Arthur. You didn't know." Merlin reassured him before continuing with the story before Arthur could interrupt again. As every minute passed, Arthur began to see what Margaret had meant. How much Merlin had done for him. Soon, a feeling of guilt washed over him. For years he'd teased and taunted Merlin. Called him useless and a coward. Even ignored him when he tried to warn Arthur about threats to Camelot and people betraying him. It was no wonder that it took Merlin so long to tell him the truth. To tell him about his magic. Arthur hadn't really given him any reason to think he'd trust him enough not to turn against him. How many times had he ranted to Merlin about the evils of magic? And yet, nearly every day, his live was saved and protected by it. By Merlin. Arthur wondered how on Earth he put up with him. The warlock in question was about to begin talking about Freya when Margaret walked in.

Her strawberry blonde hair had a slight wave to it, flowing over her shoulders gracefully. She wore 3 inch heels so she stood at 5"11 and a slim royal blue dress hugged her figure and made her striking blue eyes stand out even more. Arthur became slightly distracted when he caught sight of her, his mouth gaping open like an idiot. Merlin noticed the change in Arthur and turned around, staring at his apprentice.

"How do I look?" she asked, blushing slightly under their non-wavering gazes.

"Great….you…I mean….wow." Arthur stammered out, causing Margaret to smirk. Merlin however managed a more intelligent response.

"Gorgeous. As always. A bit tight, don't you think?" She rolled her eyes.

"That's the point, Merlin." Margaret pointed out as the doorbell rang. "That'll be him." Merlin moved to get up but she quickly stopped him. "Oh, no you don't. Last thing I need is for you to interrogate him like you did the last one." He was about to say something in argument but she was already leaving the room. "Be back later!" she called before running out. After Arthur had regained his wits he couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

"What?" Merlin asked, looking at him.

"You. If I didn't know any better, Merlin, I'd say you were worried about her."

"Course I am. She causes trouble where ever she goes."

"A bit like you then. So, where were we?" Merlin paused at the question, staring at his now abandoned breakfast. "Merlin?"

"You know, we can finish this later. There's no hurry. How about we-" Merlin started to ramble, avoiding Arthur's eyes before Arthur interrupted him.

"Merlin. What's wrong? Why do you all of a sudden not want to tell me all the stuff I didn't know?"

"It's nothing. Perhaps we could just finish it later." Merlin tried, really wanting to avoid the next subject and started to stand up.

"Merlin, sit down." Hesitantly, he did so and stared at the table, still avoiding Arthur's eyes. The blonde stared at Merlin, noticing the sad look on his face. "It's obviously not nothing so tell me. What is it that you're so keen on not telling me?" After a few moments of silence, Merlin whispered one word almost inaudibly.

"Freya." Arthur stared at him, not quite hearing what he said.

"I didn't catch that."

"Freya." he said, louder this time, his voice thick with emotion. Merlin shifted in his seat, still not looking up.

"I don't understand." Arthur noted, looking at Merlin earnestly. It was clear that this one word held a lot of meaning but he didn't have a clue as to what.

"Do…do you remembered that…that bounty hunter? He came to Camelot with a druid girl." He started off slowly, softly. Arthur thought back to what Merlin had mentioned.

"The one who was cursed? The Bastet?" Merlin nodded. And suddenly Arthur realized. Halig was right in his suspicions about Merlin. He _was_ hiding her. "You were the one who helped her escape." he sighed. "Her name was Freya?" Again Merlin nodded. "How could you be so stupid? She was dangerous."

"It wasn't her fault! She was cursed! She didn't have a choice!" Merlin shouted suddenly, defending the girl. As he did so, he finally looked up at Arthur, his blue eyes full of emotion, sparkling with tears. Arthur stared back, a bit shocked by the outburst. "She…she didn't want to hurt anyone." Merlin said, quieter this time, his voice breaking slightly. Arthur watched him for a moment, noting the way Merlin defended her.

"Merlin….please tell me you didn't…"

"Didn't what? Fall in love with her?" Merlin replied pointedly, a few stray tears falling down his pale face. "Because I did. I don't care what you say about it. I loved her. And I've never fallen for another." This time it was Arthur's turn to look at the table. He remembered the girl's screams as she transformed into a beast. The way she tore Halig apart. And the wail of pain as his sword pierced her.

"And I killed her…"

"You did what you had to. You were protecting Camelot." Merlin replied, wiping away at his tears. Arthur suddenly looked up at him, his face written with confusion. Now Merlin was defending _him_? Even though he killed her? Killed the only women he's ever loved? "Don't feel guilty about it, Arthur. I forgave you a long time ago."

"How? You should be furious with me. Hell, you should hate me." Then again, it was so like Merlin to forgive him. There wasn't a hateful bone in his body. It's something that Arthur had always admired.

"An old friend once told me that a half cannot truly hate that which makes it whole." Merlin stated softly. Arthur simply looked at him with confusion.

"That makes no sense at all, Merlin."

"That's because you're an idiot." Merlin replied, smiling at him. Arthur grinned back, glad to see a glint of the old Merlin again. He listened to the rest of all that Merlin had done, paying attention to every word. He couldn't help but chuckle at the fact that every time he thought the boy was in the bloody tavern he was actually saving Camelot or saving him. And for a long while, Arthur had thought Merlin drank more than Gwaine, and that would be quite an accomplishment. Merlin had done so much for him. For everyone he cared about. And to think that Arthur had called him lazy. The more Merlin talked, the more it became clear that he actually had had very little time for himself. All of his time at Camelot he was doing chores for Arthur, saving Arthur, risking his life for Arthur, protecting Arthur, serving Arthur. Arthur, Arthur, Arthur, Arthur. Arthur just let it all soak in. Margaret really did have a point. No wonder Merlin was worried about him as it seemed that's all he ever did as his secret protector. He remembered back to when he was bitten by the Questing Beast. He'd mentioned to his father that he felt as if someone was watching over him, keeping him from harm. His guardian angel. And the whole time, it was the annoying servant who insulted him daily. The one who could barely walk two feet without tripping, couldn't find with a sword to save his life, and somehow managed to follow Arthur into battle countless times and almost always come out unharmed.

Of course, now, he realized it was because that thin and pale servant could in fact hold his own and protect himself and others. Just not with a sword. But with magic. The magic that he'd been told his whole life was evil. Yet it wasn't. Merlin wasn't. It was true that when Merlin had told him, showed him the truth while he had been dying from the fatal blow dealt by Mordred he was scared. It was an immediate reaction that he now regretted. Merlin may be powerful, he remembered Gaius telling him that Merlin was the greatest sorcerer to walk the earth, but he had no need to fear him. Still though. Merlin and powerful were just two words he couldn't see going together. But the more he heard Merlin recount all that he'd done, the more he realized it was true. He may be a thin, pale, clumsy, self-sacrificing idiot, but he was powerful.

The warlock finally reached the end hours later. He recounted how when Mordred turned on them, he turned on Merlin and told Morgana that he was Emrys. Emrys. _'Not even Emrys can save you now.' _The words echoed in his head. That's what she had meant. Though he didn't question it at the time, he'd always wondered what Morgana had meant by that. Then Merlin said how he was attacked and lost his magic. Arthur snapped back from his thoughts at that. Merlin lost his magic. And had to go to some cave to get it back. At the same time…_oh_. When Merlin had told him that he wouldn't be going to Camlann with Arthur, he'd actually been hurt. He'd actually thought at first that Merlin was too scared and was making excuses. Then he thought that there was more to it, something he wasn't telling Arthur. And now he knew the truth. He was trying to get his magic back. To help Arthur.

"I'm sorry." It was the first thing he could think to say. Merlin paused, looking at him for a moment. "I…when you told me you weren't going…I practically called you a coward. That was wrong of me….I should never have doubted you." Now the warlock looked worried.

"Did you just…"

"Apologize? Yes. I'm not always a prat you know."

"Could've fooled me." They both laughed and for a moment Arthur could almost imagine that nothing had changed at all.

"Is it true?" Arthur asked suddenly. "What Gaius told me?"

"What did he tell you?"

"He…he said…" he gave a small chuckle, still trying to wrap his head around it. "He said that you're the most powerful sorcerer to walk the Earth. Are you?" Merlin nodded without hesitation and Arthur let that sink in and accept it. When he noticed the time, noting that they had been talking for several hours, another question occurred to him. "Margaret told me something this morning…but she didn't exactly explain…how did she end up being your apprentice?"

* * *

><p><em>3 years ago<em>

It'd only been a few months since he'd received word of a possible Seer in the western U.S. when Merlin found himself in Vegas. Tracking the girl had been fairly easy. In a sense. It was easy to know where she was, but actually finding her was the difficult part. A Seer was rare, even nowadays. And if found by the wrong people, well, he didn't want to think about it. That last time he encountered one that actually was a Seer was in 16th Century France.

However, finding this girl seemed to be more of a challenge than normal. She'd already earned herself a reputation and was constantly getting into trouble. And whenever he got lose to finding her, she was one step ahead of him and already gone without a trace. But tonight was different. This time, he actually caught sight of her and had followed her for over an hour. There was something about her that he couldn't quite figure out. Something almost familiar.

It was in an alley behind a large office building late in the evening where she stopped to meet some people. Not the greatest people to be around either. There were four tall, muscular men who met with her as he hid in the shadows, out of sight. All were dressed decently enough to fit into a normal crowd but they had that look about them. Like they couldn't be trusted. The one in front with brown hair spoke first.

"At last you show up. I've been trying to meet up with you for weeks, sweetheart." The girl rolled her eyes in disgust, her arms crossed over her chest.

"I thought I told you not to call me that anymore. And I'm afraid I've been too busy to deal with you till now. What do you want?" Merlin immediately figured they knew each other.

"You know the answer to that."

"It's over Marcus. I'm not going back. Not after what you did." she argued harshly, the tone of her voice putting Merlin on edge as he watched the scene unfold.

"I had nothing to do with that." The man, Marcus, went to step towards her but she reacted without hesitation, pulling a gun from behind her back and pointing it at him. He put his hands up, and took a step back. "There's four of us, sweetheart. You'd be lucky to get off one shot." The girl watched him for a moment when a look crossed her eyes. A look Merlin remembered all too well. The same look Morgana had all those years ago.

"Wanna bet?" Her eyes flashed gold and the three men behind Marcus flew back into the wall, their heads connecting with the bricks with a loud crack and slumped to the ground, dead. Merlin's heart almost dropped in his chest. He'd hoped to get to this girl before she went down that path. She was so young, he'd hoped he'd been in time. But it seemed he wasn't.

"That wasn't necessary, dear. I just want to talk. Do you have any idea how much we could make with that little gift of yours?"

"You killed my brother. What makes you think I'd go back to you after that?" she glared at him, the betrayal written plainly across her face. "He was all I had left and you took him from me." The pain vanished from her eyes, replaced by anger and hatred as she took a step towards him, the gun aimed at his head. "I'd much rather kill you, piece by piece, and make you die and agonizing death for what you did." Marcus, with his hands up, took a step back. But not in fear. He had a small smile on his face.

"As fun as that sounds, I've got other plans." Merlin sensed why he was smiling and looked up. On the opposite roof of where the girl was standing was a fifth man, a long range rifle aimed at her.

"_Astrice!_" Merlin shouted as he ran out from his hiding spot to stand in front of the girl. The man on the roof flew back out of sight but Marcus was more than prepared. Quickly recovering from the shock of Merlin appearing out of nowhere, he took out a gun of his own and fired before running off down the alley. It took Merlin a moment to register the pain blazing in his abdomen when he doubled over. His hand pressed against the wound, blood quickly flowing out before he collapsed into darkness.

_Several hours later_

Pain. There was a lot of pain. It started in his abdomen and flared outwards. The world was dark, except for glimpses of consciousness slipping through. Blue eyes wide with confusion and fear. A soft voice. A flash of red hair. When Merlin was fully conscious he found himself laying on something soft and warm. He could feel that his shirt was missing, replaced by bandages around his middle.

A small groan escaped his lips and his eyes fluttered open. It took a moment for everything to come into focus through the pain but he was able to make a pair of blue eyes staring at him. As his vision cleared, he recognized the Seer girl and the reason for his pain became clear as he remembered what happened. He'd been shot.

"How are you feeling?" she asked after a moment of silently watching him. It took Merlin a few seconds to do anything other than groan before he found his voice.

"I've had better days." he muttered softly and took in his surroundings. Merlin quickly realized it was a nice hotel room. He was lying in a large bed by the window and a second large bed lay near the door. The walls were decked in modern wall paper that gave the room a warm feel to it. Glimpsing out the window he could catch a glimpse of tall buildings that he recognized as part of the Las Vegas Strip. "Where am I?"

"My hotel room at the Excalibur." She replied immediately, watching Merlin carefully as he tried to sit up, but the pain flared to extremes and decided against it, and leaned back into the sheets.

"The Excalibur?" Merlin asked, almost smirking. "Oh, the irony."

"What?"

"Nothing."

"It was easy enough to get you up here. Your black shirt hit the blood and I just had to act like you were drunk. It's such a common thing in this town nobody thought twice about it." she explained softly. "I was able to get the bullet out without any trouble. No organs were damaged and luckily for you I pack first aid supplies for bullet wounds. Need to with the people I meet." She stopped and looked at him curiously for a moment. "Why did you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Save me." Merlin simply shrugged as if it was no big deal. "Are you? I mean….I saw what you did. Your eyes turned gold….are you like me?" Merlin paused as he looked at her. He gave a small nod. "I…I had no idea there were others. I haven't met anyone else who could do things like that. Except….you said a word with it. What was it?"

"A spell." Her eyes widened and she watched him. Again he tried to sit up and this time she helped, carefully leaning his back against the headboard before sitting down on the edge of the bed. "What do you know? About what you can do?"

"Not much. Sometimes…I can move things, even people, with my mind. Throw them back. If I concentrate hard enough. Few months back I accidentally lit a hotel room on fire. And I have….I see things. Things that come true. Sometimes during the day, but it's mostly when I sleep. Like dreams. But they actually happen." she slowly explained. "Do you know what it is?" Merlin nodded.

"You have magic." He could see her freeze at that. "And you're a Seer. You can see the future. That's what your dreams are. They're visions."

"But…..but magic. It doesn't really exist."

"It does. How else would you explain what you can do?" she shook her head slightly. "Here. Let me show you." Wincing he sat a little straighter and held his palm out to her. "_Forbæne._" His eyes flashed gold and a small fire appeared in his palm. She stared, mesmerized by the flame before it disappeared as quickly as it came. She blinked a few times before looking back up at him.

"Why were you in that alley?"

"I followed you. I've been tracking you, trying to find you for the past few months."

"I knew I was being followed. But…why were you trying to find me?"

"I've got a few acquaintances out here. They got wind of a possible Seer so I came out to see if it was true. Seers aren't too common. Their powers are rare and whenever one shows up it's a mad grab for them. Used by the wrong people, your powers could be used for the wrong ends and cause far more harm than good. It could cause you to go down the wrong path. I've seen it happen before." Merlin explained, a sorrowed look crossing his eyes at the last sentence, remembering how Morgana had turned from friend to foe in such a horrible way. He paused and looked back up at her. "What's your name?"

"Margaret." She answered after a moment. "So, I could learn how to control this….my magic? Like spells and stuff that you see in the movies?" Merlin nodded. A small smile lit up her face. But it wasn't a happy smile. It was a cruel one. One that only brought back more memories of Morgana. "I could get rid of Marcus and the others. I could make them pay for what they did." Merlin's eyes grew sad as he watched her.

"No." Margaret stopped and looked at him. "That's not what magic is for. It's not to be abused in any way you see fit. Trust me, Margaret. You don't want to go down that path. You've already killed three men tonight. But you can still change." Margaret watched him closely.

"You don't know what they did to me. They killed my little brother. I trusted them to protect him and they betrayed me."

"I'm sorry. But revenge isn't going to bring him back. I know what it's like to be betrayed, and it hurts. But killing them won't make it better." he argued, trying to reason with her.

"Before….you said I could go down the wrong path…..that you'd seen it happen before." Merlin nodded.

"She was a friend of mine. And a Seer. It was a long time ago. She felt betrayed and let her heart become filled with hate."

"What happened to her?"

"I killed her. It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. But she'd already gone too far and there was no going back. She wasn't going to stop. So I had to stop her." Margaret scooted away from him slightly, but the look in her of vengeance vanished from her eyes.

"I….I'm sorry. What was her name?"

"Morgana."

"Morgana?" she asked, looking up at him, slightly shocked. "You don't mean…you can't…that's not…." Merlin smiled softly.

"I see you're somewhat familiar with the Arthurian legends." She nodded in response. "I'm Merlin." Her eyes widened dramatically and she stood up, accidentally jarring the bed causing Merlin to wince sharply.

"You…what…but….no…..no no no no no no. You're telling me I have…..I have Merlin… the Merlin in my hotel room. Bleeding in my hotel room. Merlin, bleeding from a gunshot wound, in my hotel room. I….you…..what?!" Margaret had to take several breaths, pacing back and forth in the room and he watched her with amused eyes. "Merlin. The Merlin. The real actual Merlin. This is…no. That…just no. I….have magic…Merlin….the Merlin just told me I have magic. The real Merlin….there's an actual Merlin. A real live….magic-y Merlin. And he's in my hotel room. At the Excalibur!" After several minutes and nearly hyperventilating she managed to calm herself down before gently sitting back down. "You're serious, right? You….You're really Merlin." He nodded. "But….you're not old…"

Merlin spent the next few days recovering. He'd tried healing himself but it took a lot of energy out of him. Margaret split her time between trying to not to freak out and mothering him obsessively, tending to his quickly healing wound. He was still incredibly weak from blood loss but was able to get out of bed with little help after three days and walk around the room to stretch his legs.

He spent the time teaching Margaret that she should use her gifts for good. To help people rather than harm them. It was clear that she wanted to argue against it, but she was too concerned about his wound to actually do so. But in the end, she took what he said to heart, no matter how much she wanted revenge. She would still think about it but quickly put those thoughts away. Merlin said she didn't want to go down that path. She'd already killed with magic. And the scary part was, when she did it, she didn't care. Nor did it make her feel better. She realized he was right. She didn't want that.

Margaret had plenty of cash so they had the hotel room for just over a month with Merlin teaching her the ways of magic and how it should be used as he healed completely. Eventually the conversation he'd thought over for a week came up.

"How would you like to learn how to control your magic? As my apprentice?"

"Really?" Margaret asked, nearly dropping the key card she was holding.

"Yeah. I've got a decent sized place in London. I could get you citizenship with a phone call and you could live with me while I teach you." A large smile lit u her face. "Is that a yes?"

"Yes!" she half shouted before hugging him.

* * *

><p><strong>And there it is! Hope you all enjoyed it. As always please review! Requests are welcome and will be considered. If you loved it, why? If you hated it, why? How can I make it better. This is for you all as much as it is for me so tell me what you think and don't hold back. <strong>

**I'll update with the next chapter ASAP!**


	5. Keeping Secrets

**Hello! I know, this is a bit late and I deeply apologize. However, I made it a point to get this chapter done by today because it's Colin Morgan's 29****th**** birthday! So here's the next chapter as a lovely present to you all! This one has a POV from each of the trio as I like to think of them. Along with a bit of hints and foreshadowing thrown in. I wasn't too clear on certain thoughts just to keep it a surprise for you all. So good luck trying to guess at what the hell Merlin's thinking about xD. **

**And Happy New Year!**

**Disclaimer: Still don't own Merlin**

* * *

><p>Arthur quickly realized why Merlin worried about her. It was clear she had a troubled past, and Merlin had also mentioned how Margaret reminded him of Morgana. When he thought about it, he could see why. But it wasn't the Morgana that he'd grown to fear. In truth, he never hated Morgana after all she had done, there was too much history between them. The betrayal had hurt, but he didn't hate her for it. He feared what she had become but never hated. Growing up, she had become a sister to him, the irony of which he understood now. But that kind and caring Morgana he had known as a child is how chose to remember her, even when she was out to kill him.<p>

And the more he thought about it, the more he could see that version of his sister in Merlin's apprentice. He could understand how Merlin was protective over her. He was trying to do right by her where he had failed with Morgana.

Still though, the idea of Merlin caring for someone as a guardian in a way, being protective and worried, was strange. It was a somewhat new part of Merlin that he'd only glimpsed in the past. Arthur of course knew that Merlin had a sense of protectiveness over him, though he never understood why back then. Before, Merlin was his clumsy, skinny, innocent servant who couldn't hurt a fly. But every now and then he saw the different parts of Merlin that he didn't understand. Wise and brave. And even the protective side, which he had always noted off as idiocy, how could Merlin protect anyone when he couldn't even wield a sword properly? Now, he understood it, but back then, it always puzzled him. He pushed those thoughts away as he looked up at the warlock, thinking back to the story.

"What happened to Marcus?"

"Don't know." Merlin noted slowly, looking as if he too was lost in his own thoughts. "Haven't seen him since. And to be honest, I think she prefers it that way." Arthur nodded before something else occurred to him.

"So what now?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean…" Arthur took a moment to form the words in his head. "There's no more Camelot…you're obviously not my servant anymore…and I'm no longer King. Of anything. I'm just….one of the little people…I guess. So…what happens now?" Merlin gave him a small smile.

"Well…you need to learn about...well…everything. And we need to find out what's coming." Arthur paused, looking at Merlin with a confused look, having no idea what he meant. "You were to return at the time of Albion's greatest need. Which means something's about to happen. We need to find out what and fulfill our destiny, setting about the Golden Age and restoring magic to the land." Arthur blinked several times.

"Right…" Okay so, instead of worrying about protecting Camelot from enemies and sorcery and what not, he's got to basically save the bloody world, Arthur thought to himself. No pressure. "How the hell are we supposed to do that?" Merlin gave another, wider smile than before and chuckled lightly.

"Don't you remember anything I just told you? We've got a Seer. She's been seeing things the last few months. Hasn't been able to make sense of it yet, but it's still an advantage." Merlin explained before giving a small sigh. "If only we can get her mind off of dating random people." He commented lightly.

* * *

><p>Perfect. There was no other way to put it. Everything was falling into place. Margaret didn't get back till the sun started to set. Part of her thought she should introduce him now but she knew it wasn't time yet. Instead, she kissed Jeff goodnight and walked into the house. Inside, she found that Merlin and Arthur had moved to the living room, chatting away on the sofa.<p>

"You two lovebirds discussing your feelings?" she teased lightly. Merlin rolled his eyes as he turned to look at her, but she could see the worry in them.

"You're back late." Now it was her turn to roll her eyes. If only he knew. But he will, she thought to herself. When the time was right. Margaret walked over to join them, kicked off her shoes and sat next to Merlin. He watched her expectantly for several moments before she sighed.

"You've nothing to worry about. He's fine. Great actually. I think you'd like him. He's like…a real life knight of the round table." she commented with a wink. Both boys raised their eyebrows at that and Margaret gave a small chuckle. "Anyway, what were you two talking about?"

"Merlin was trying to teach me a bit about modern technology." Arthur commented, scratching the back of his head lightly. "None of it makes any sense to me." Merlin and Margaret both laughed before she let out a small gasp.

"Speaking of which." Margaret dug into her purse as she spoke. "I had Jeff stop by a shop for me and got this for you." She pulled out a cell phone and tossed it to Arthur. He caught it and turned it over several times in his hands.

"Thanks." Arthur smiled, looking at the object in his hands with curiosity. "Phone. Right?" he asked. Merlin and Margaret both nodded.

"You need one. I'll help you learn how to use it." she smiled softly.

* * *

><p>That night, Merlin hardly got any sleep. There was just too much on his mind. He'd spent the whole day talking to Arthur about the past and the present. It felt so natural, so normal. Yet, every time he blinked or looked away, he feared Arthur would disappear and he'd wake up discovering it was nothing more than a dream. It wouldn't be the first time he dreamed that Arthur had come back only to find out that he was still gone. But this time felt far more real than ever before. And that almost terrified him. He didn't want to sleep. It was too real. If he woke up to find that it wasn't…<p>

Even if it was. If Arthur really is back. What if he failed again? He remembered Arthur dying in his arms. '_Just…just hold me.' _It was forever ingrained in his memory. '_I want to say something I've never said to you before. Thank you.'_ It played over and over again in his mind. He couldn't go through that again. Pushing those thoughts away, Merlin sighed and turned over to look up at the ceiling, thinking over all he'd told Arthur. There were very few things he held back. He wanted Arthur to know everything, but he knew there were some things that could wait. The last thing Merlin wanted to do was completely overwhelm him. Which is why he didn't mention that the incident with Morgause, what his mother had said to him, that he was born of magic, was true. Not yet.

"_And what of Camelot? What happened after I died?"_

"_Arthur-"_

"_How was Guinevere? Did you look after her for me? Was she happy?"_

"_She…missed you."_

"_Merlin, there's something you're not telling me. What is it?"_

"_Later. You've only just got back. It can wait."_

He knew Arthur would ask. But he had no idea how to tell him. No idea how he'd react to such news. It was going to be hard. For both of them. He was extraordinarily glad he had Margaret. Even though she could be trouble, she was there when he needed her to be. If he was entirely honest, he wasn't surprised that she and Arthur seemed to be getting along without too much trouble. Especially since…when Merlin found out, what she was, it gave him more hope than he'd ever had in centuries. Thing was, he didn't tell her. She had no clue. And neither does Arthur.

Merlin planned on telling them of course, but he didn't know how to bring it up. So many years, keeping secrets. Hiding things for so long. It was still a habit for him. Most of the time, Margaret had to basically interrogate him when she knew he was hiding something.

So much to do. So much to say. How the hell was he going to do this?

* * *

><p>A week had passed. Arthur was slowly getting used to things. He'd only left the house twice, just to walk down the street and back. He tried his best not to jump as each car passed, each plane flying overhead. The sounds of life were so different than what he knew. In Camelot, he'd hear people talking, the sounds of horses on cobblestone, swords clanging together, the crackle of fire, the creaking of wood, and the sound of boots on hard stone. And yet, it was relatively quiet, especially at night. Now, everything was so loud. Even when the sun had long gone down, Arthur could hear the cars on the road. Didn't these people ever sleep?<p>

A few people had spoken to him on his small walks. They'd say hello from their garden as he'd pass by. Ask him his name, where he lived, when he moved to the neighborhood. Friendly conversation. No 'my lord's or 'sire's. Like he was just another random person. It was so strange. He'd done his best to answer without being too suspicious. Without acting like he had no idea what they were talking about when they mentioned things going on in the world around them.

At one point during today's walk, a kind old woman tending to her garden had gotten him to linger around longer and talk with him for a while. She'd mentioned the royal family which he knew next to nothing about.

"Have you seen the recent pictures of Prince George?"

"Oh…..no, can't say I have."

"So handsome. Reckon he looks a lot like his dad."

"Yeah….I guess he does."

"Just you wait. Once that boy hits his teen years, he's going to be the heart throb of every girl in the country, just like William was. Let's just hope he doesn't get his father's hair line. Poor lad's already going bald." She laughed.

He'd been so confused that he just laughed a little awkwardly before mentioning something about needing to get back and said goodbye. He had no clue what she was talking about. Arthur didn't even know there was a prince. And who the hell was William? Inwardly groaning, he hurried back to the house and plopped down on the couch where Margaret was reading again. She looked up when he sighed and put the book down. She was good about that. Several times during the week she could tell when something was bothering him, and if Merlin was off in his room doing God knows what, she'd talk to him. He'd never really had someone to just talk to so openly. Besides Merlin. But Arthur noticed the last day or so, Merlin had been avoiding him after he'd asked yet again about what happened to Guinevere. He knew he was hiding something. There was something he didn't want to tell Arthur. Margaret disrupted his thoughts by clearing her throat lightly.

"What's wrong? Had a bad walk?"

"No, I just….I've don't know anything. At all. This woman was talking to me about Prince George? And something about him going to be sought after by every girl just like William?" Margaret let out a small laugh.

"Oh. Yeah. Never understood that about William. I was always a Harry girl myself. Merlin says it's cause I like reckless men. He's not even that reckless. I just like that he's ginger." She rambled off and Arthur was left staring at her and leaned back, groaning irritably.

"I don't understand." Margaret smiled gently at him.

"Alright, brief history lesson then. William and Harry are the Queen's grandsons. Their mother, Diana, who everyone loved apparently, was killed in a car crash when they were young. Harry is a little wild and had this scandal in Vegas involving a pool and I think strippers. I'm not sure. He's still single. And William recently married a commoner named Kate, a few years ago. She got pregnant, and just had a baby boy about a year ago, whom I wanted them to name Arthur but whatever. George is a good enough name I guess." Margaret explained slowly. "And even though he's the Queen's great grandson, he's in line for the throne above his parents, which I don't understand, but then again I know next to nothing about how a monarchy works."

"How come?" Arthur asked curiously.

"Didn't grow up in one. There's no Queen or King in the States." Arthur stared for a moment, trying to understand.

"Then who runs the Kingdom?"

"The President. We vote him into office….the throne, I guess you could say. But not as much power." He nodded slowly.

"And you vote for…what…people of nobility?" Margaret laughed loudly at that, hiding her face in her hands before looking back up at Arthur.

"Hell no. There is isn't any nobility. Not really. Just rich people who think they know what they're doing."

"And none of them are nobility?"

"There's no nobility. Not anymore. There might be here in England but I don't know. Doubt it though. Nobody really cares about that anymore." Arthur had to smile at that. He never really thought noble blood mattered. He proved that much when he knighted commoners. It was nice to see that had carried on in a way.

"Sounds like a lot is different when it comes to ruling."

"That's an understatement. The Queen doesn't even have that much power. In all reality, the Prime Minister is in charge here in the U.K. And he's voted in as well." None of this had exactly helped Arthur understand but it was a start anyway. He was going to have to learn somehow.

"I'm really confused."

"Me too." she smiled softly at him. "I try to avoid politics."

"And you're not from here, right? Don't even sound like it. You grew up in the….States you said?"

"America. It's as the British say 'across the pond.'" She laughed and he just stared at her, clearly not getting it. "On the other side of the Pacific Ocean. This guy discovered it in the 1600's. English people colonized there. A hundred or so years later the King decided to be an arrogant ass and they rebelled. Revolutionary war and boom. America. Just to make a long story short."

"Right…" Arthur heard shuffling from upstairs. Merlin pacing up in his room. "Margaret, can I ask you a question?"

"That in itself is a question. And I'm positive you've already asked me at least 6 questions in the last few minutes. Which means you've reached your question limit for the day." she commented. Arthur, already becoming used to this from her, simply rolled his eyes before continuing.

"Do you have any idea why Merlin's been avoiding me the last few days?" The smile on her face fell slightly and he automatically knew that she did. She pursed her lips together and looked down, not answering. "Margaret?"

"I think I've got a pretty good idea about why…"

"And?"

"I shouldn't say." She moved to stand up. Arthur reached out, firmly but gently taking hold of her arm before she could walk away. She sighed, sitting back down and looked away from him.

"What's going on?" It took a few moments before Margaret looked up at him.

"He's avoiding your questions about Camelot." Arthur's eyebrows raised in surprise. "He never told me much about what happened after you died, but I think he's worried about how you'll take it." He could tell she knew something but it was clear to him that she wasn't going to tell him. Seems he'd have to wait for Merlin to do so. Margaret and Arthur stared at one another for several moments. It was the first time he'd held eye contact with her for more than a few seconds. It was odd. There was something about her. He couldn't quite figure it out. Already he'd seen slight reminders of Morgana in her like Merlin had noted she expressed when they had that long talk while she was out. But this was something different from that. It was familiar. But he couldn't place it. "I think we should go do something." Margaret stated suddenly and looked up towards the stairs. "The three of us. Perhaps train you how to fight." Arthur paused at that.

"I know how to fight."

"Yeah, with a sword." She rolled her eyes. "But not with a gun. I know Merlin's got quite a few, even though he technically shouldn't. Keeps them upstairs. I'm positive you're going to need to know how to use one." Before she could continue they heard the door upstairs open and Merlin came down a few seconds later. Arthur watched as Merlin froze slightly, looking at them. Margaret ignored this as she smiled at him. "Merlin! I was about to go get you. I was just telling Arthur that he needs to learn how to use a gun."

Merlin simply watched them for several seconds before nodding. "Sounds like a good idea. I'll…go get them." With that, he quickly headed back upstairs.

* * *

><p>Merlin was incredibly grateful for Margaret's idea of going out shooting. It always helped to clear his mind when he was troubled. Maybe when they were finished he'd be able to tell Arthur. He quickly reached under his bed for the box which held a few handguns, and headed downstairs with a small smile on his face. Arthur and Margaret were already ready and Margaret had the car keys in her hand.<p>

"No. Absolutely not. You are not driving." She looked up at him, feigning being offended.

"And why the hell not? I'm a good driver."

"Last time I let you drive, you kept veering to the wrong side of the rode. And I don't feel like getting pulled over because you feel like going 45 over the speed limit." She grudgingly handed the keys to him, muttering an insult under her breath. Merlin smiled at Arthur before heading outside. Margaret quickly took the backseat of the car once it was unlocked and spread her legs across all the seat which would force Arthur to sit in the front next to Merlin. He sighed lightly, knowing she did that on purpose since he'd been avoiding Arthur. Why the hell was she taking Arthur's side on this when she knew why he didn't want to answer the questions? He knew why, but it still annoyed him. He tossed the box in the back and Margaret barely caught it as he buckled himself in. Arthur was the last one in the car, taking his time as he clearly didn't like travelling in the car. Merlin heard him muttering something about preferring a horse as he buckled himself in.

The drive started out relatively quiet. Margaret was busy listening to her iPod in the back and Arthur was hesitating at resuming his unanswered questioning. It took him ten minutes to even say anything.

"Where are we going exactly?"

"There's a large bit of land that the royal family gave to me for privacy to practice whatever I wish without worrying about the public eye. It's where I teach Margaret more advanced magic and it makes a great shooting range." Merlin explained quickly. They fell into silence once more.

It wasn't until they were far beyond the city limits and into the country side that Arthur spoke again.

"When are you going to answer my questions about Camelot?"

"It's…" Merlin sighed, knowing there was no way of getting out of it. "When we get back to the house." He promised, immediately wishing that he hadn't. Arthur nodded, accepting that for now.

"I'll hold you to that."

"I'm sure you will." He pulled onto an unmarked road and drove to the edge of a field that had targets strewn about. "We're here."

* * *

><p><strong>Aaaaand there it is! I'll do my best to get the next chapter done as soon as possible. If I end up procrastinating, then I'm counting on my beautiful lioness to nag me with text messages to get off youtube and write. You know who you are! <strong>

**Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. Reviews are adored and cherished and I'd even love to hear about criticism if you think I need to work on something. I've always got an open ear for suggestions and requests on my writing style so please don't be shy.**

**Once again, wishing Colin a very happy birthday! I'm so proud of my future husband. *cough* I mean, what? I didn't say that. Happy New Years everyone!**


	6. Secrets and Tempers

**I am so sorry this took so long. It's been two weeks. I deeply apologize for the wait. So I won't keep you any longer. Here's chapter 6. I hope you like it.**

* * *

><p>The three of them were standing in the middle of the nearly empty field. Merlin had already pinned the paper targets to the metal bases several meters ahead of them. With a few muttered words, his eyes flashed gold, unlocking the large box he was holding. Arthur couldn't but think back to when Merlin revealed his magic. It felt like so long ago but it was practically last week. For him anyway. He watched with curiosity as Merlin handed a strange metal object to Margaret.<p>

She quickly loaded and cocked it with ease, aiming at one of the targets. Arthur nearly jumped out of his skin as she fired a shot and hit near the center with a laugh. He stood frozen for a moment trying to process what just happened.

"Show off." Merlin muttered. Arthur took a breath, collecting himself.

"The hell was that?!" Merlin took another one out of the box and handed it to Arthur. He look it over cautiously.

"It's a gun." Merlin explained and took out a third for himself. "Here." He tossed him a cartridge and showed him slowly how to load it. It took several tries but was eventually able to do it. Margaret fired off another shot, causing Arthur to jump again. Merlin chuckled. "It's alright. You get used to it." Arthur stared at him incredulously as Merlin loaded his own gun.

"How the hell do you get used to that?" Arthur almost immediately regretted asking as a shadow crossed Merlin's usually gleeful eyes.

"It just happens…" Merlin cleared his throat before cocking the gun and gesturing for Arthur to do the same. He did and watched Merlin expectantly. "Here. You aim it. Like you would a crossbow. The squeeze the trigger. And keep a tight grip for the recoil." Merlin explained as he aimed, showing Arthur, and nodded. "Like this." This time, Arthur was prepared as Merlin fired off a shot. He still jumped but it didn't freak him out as much as before. Arthur looked at the target and noticed that Merlin's aim was on point. That's a first, he thought to himself but didn't mention it out loud as Margaret fired yet another shot. "Your turn." Merlin noted and helped Arthur aim. "Be careful of the recoil." Arthur nodded and took a breath before squeezing the trigger. Bulls-eye.

"Good shot." Margaret smiled.

"Same goes for you." Arthur responded, gesturing to her target.

"That's because she cheats." Merlin smiled cheekily before firing off another shot. Arthur did his best not to jump at the sound.

"How do I cheat?!" she exclaimed, looking offended as she ran a hand through her red hair.

"You're American." Merlin teased with a smile and Margaret sighed. Arthur's blue eyes darted between the two of them, feeling as if he'd just missed a joke.

"How…how is that cheating?" Arthur asked and Merlin simply smiled.

"Remember when we first met and got into that mace fight? You said you'd been trained to kill since birth." Arthur nodded with a roll of his eyes. Leave it to Merlin to bring up something completely off topic. Idiot. "It's the same thing for her with guns."

"Hardly." Margaret scoffed and fired off another shot. Merlin chuckled and Arthur mentally took Margaret's side. If he didn't that would be admitting that he cheated in that mace fight because he'd had years of training. But it was Merlin who cheated not him. Yes, magic is definitely cheating, no matter what M_er_lin says.

* * *

><p>About an hour later they all ran out of bullets and Merlin decided to take advantage of the private field to give Margaret time and space to practice. Arthur took a seat on the ground to watch as Merlin locked the guns away. It was only noon so there was still plenty of daylight left. In all reality, they didn't really need to practice out here but Merlin was stalling. He had to go and make Arthur that damn promise. Merlin knew he would now have to answer all of Arthur's questions the moment they got home and he was trying to delay the inevitable. Mostly because he knew it was not going to be easy for Arthur and he had no idea how he'd react. Running a shaky hand through his hair, he pushed those thoughts away and opened up the back of the car, pulling out a life size statue of a cat.<p>

"You been studying?" he asked, putting the stone figure down on the grass in front of Margaret before stepping away.

"Every night. Not that it helps. I'm useless at this spell." Margaret muttered, eyeing the stone cat as if it had somehow offended her.

"It's powerful magic. Takes lots of practice." Merlin encouraged with a smile. It was at that moment that Arthur spoke up from where he sat off to the side.

"What is it you're trying to do exactly?" Merlin couldn't hold back the small smile on his face at Arthur's question. He'd been able to tell that Arthur was still ever so slightly hesitant about magic and he couldn't really blame him for that. But asking questions was a great start.

"Make it come to life." Margaret grumbled and raised her hand towards the statue. "Bobai odothay arsan quickem." Nothing happened. "Bobai odothay arsan quickem." she muttered again but to no avail.

"It's still a statue." Arthur noted mindlessly, earning him an exasperated sigh from Margaret.

"Yes. Thank you, Arthur. I hadn't noticed." She muttered. Merlin watched with subtle eyes, smiling softly to himself at the exchange.

"You've only been trying this spell for a month now. It'll take some time." Merlin encouraged again. He himself remembered trying to learn this spell. He'd only been Arthur's servant for a few days when he had to save his life from Sir Valiant. So long ago now. It had been so very simple back then, Merlin almost missed it.

"How long did it take you to learn this spell, Merlin?" Arthur asked, pulling him from his thoughts. He's forgot the two of them were there for a moment.

"I stayed up all night to learn it." he responded offhandedly as if it hardly mattered. Margaret groaned audibly while Arthur just stared at Merlin with an almost comical expression of disbelief. "What?"

"You…you said she's been working on this spell for a month. And you learned it overnight?"

"Yeah." He nodded. "Had to so I could save your royal backside." Arthur smiled widely.

"Valiant. His shield." Arthur noted lightly. "I sacked you."

"That's because you're a prat." Merlin chuckled before walking over to Margaret who was now glaring at the statue, as if wishing it would catch fire or explode. "Try it again. Watch your pronunciation. Focus. You can do it." Margaret nodded slowly as he stepped back and let out a small breath. She looked back at the statue after glancing at him and took a few small, steadying breaths.

"Berbay odothay arisan quicken." Her eyes flashed gold and the statue turned into a black cat. Margaret let out a relieved laugh as the feline meowed and scampered over to Arthur.

"See?" Merlin smiled widely. "Know you'd get it eventually. Just needed practice." Arthur watched as the cat in wonder as it climbed onto his lap, purring loudly. "She likes you." Arthur reached out to her and gently scratched her head. The cat leant into his touch and purred louder than before, perfectly content. Margaret collapsed to the ground, spreading her arms out in the grass with a sigh and mindlessly played with a small fire in her palm. A soft breeze kicked up as Merlin sat down next to Arthur, smiling.

"You should keep her." he commented lightly. Arthur paused his attention that he was giving the cat to look up at Merlin.

"You can't be serious."

"I am. I don't see why not." Merlin smiled wider as the cat nudged Arthur's hand and meowed, clearly annoyed that he'd stopped scratching her.

"Al-Alright." Arthur stuttered, scratching her head again. "What…what should I call her?"

"Luci." Margaret spoke up, looking over at them with a wide grin. Both Merlin and Arthur looked over at her. "Short for Lucifer." Merlin couldn't hold back his laugh and rolled his eyes and Arthur gave a light shrug.

"I'm not going to come up with anything better. Lucifer it is."

* * *

><p>A lake. Tall mountains capped with fresh snow and a gentle breeze breaking the calm surface of the water. A woman stood by the shore wearing a purple dress. Long black hair flew gently in the wind, framing her face. The wind spoke in soft whispers, words floating through the air. "The time of Albion approaches." The voice was soft, like it belonged to the woman.<p>

The scene shifted. A tall man, muscular and strong but with a kind face. He wore chainmail, a cloak of red with the Pendragon crest. He stood in the middle of a London street and what he wore began to change, fading into modern attire. A vow from his lips danced through the air. "Your enemies are my enemies."

Margaret took a sharp breath as the vision faded away and she took a moment to remember where she was. They'd finished up practice and were already on their way home. Leaning her head against the window, she noticed Merlin looking back at her for a second before focusing once more on the road. It seemed he noticed her intake of air.

"You alright?" She nodded slowly and Arthur turned in his seat to look back at her, Luci sitting contently on his lap.

"It was just another vision." Her voice remained steady but Merlin knew she felt otherwise. Margaret was sure he did. Seeing the future wasn't exactly an easy thing to go through and he knew that. Her heart was racing slightly as she tried to calm herself.

"Anything worth noting?" Merlin pressed much to her annoyance. It wasn't time to tell him yet. She knew he'd lose it if she told him now. This wasn't the first time she'd seen this particular vision or others similar to it, and she knew what it meant. Something was coming, but instead of telling Merlin, Margaret lied again.

"It wasn't clear enough to understand. Just….bits and pieces." The lie came out easily as it was certainly not the first time she'd used that excuse. Margaret kept telling herself that it was for Merlin's sake. He'd work himself into a frenzy if he knew. "Still trying to make sense of it." Merlin nodded, accepting the answer without any fuss. Arthur however, had different plans.

"Are your….visions always like that?" he asked with what she knew was genuine curiosity. Luci meowed affectionately as she nodded. "Well…..what did you see exactly?" Margaret held back a small groan at the question and tried to think about what to say that wouldn't reveal too much.

"There….were mountains. A…London street. Someone was talking. They said that Albion's time approaches. And there was a man." she explained slowly, knowing to avoid mentioning the lake as that would set off Merlin's warning bells.

"A man?" Arthur continued. "What did he look like?" To stop herself from glaring at him she focused her eyes on the countryside they were driving by.

"Well….he was tall." She knew exactly who he was but did her best to be vague. "Muscular. But not in a scary way. A kind face. Like you could trust him."

"Sounds a bit like Percival." Merlin joked and Arthur laughed his agreement. Margaret was grateful that neither of them noticed her tense up ever so slightly and played it off by mindlessly scratching the back of her neck and rolled her eyes.

"Isn't he one of the Knights of the Round Table?" Margaret questioned nonchalantly as if she didn't already know. Arthur smiled and nodded.

"How much do you know about Camelot?" he asked.

"I know almost everything there is to know about the legend. Not to boost your ego, but it was my favorite story growing up." Arthur raised his eyebrows slightly.

"Why?"

"Don't know. Just felt…a sort of connection to it." She didn't notice Merlin shifting nervously in the driver's seat at her answer.

* * *

><p>As soon as they got home, Merlin noted that Margaret retreated to her bedroom as he sat down on the couch, preparing himself for Arthur's interrogation. Arthur sat down next to him, holding Luci in his arms, having already become fond of her, and watched him expectantly.<p>

"What do you want to start off with?" Merlin asked, avoiding his friends gaze.

"Gwen." Merlin sighed lightly and took a small breath.

"Alright. There's quite a few things you need to know so just be patient." Arthur nodded so he continued. "When you died…I didn't return to Camelot until about a week later. All of Camelot was mourning you and they were all worried. Gwaine and Percival had apparently gone after Morgana and Gwaine was hurt. Bad. Everyone knew you were gone and they thought they were going to lose him as well. Luckily, I got back in time to help him. Gwen….she was strong. She was devastated but she carried on and her grief didn't hold her back as Queen. She'd have made you proud." Merlin paused for a moment and looked up at Arthur whose eyes were bright with unshed tears, clearly trying to hold them back. "When I was with you, Gaius had told her….about me. Not directly but she put two and two together and figured it out. We told the Round Table first. None of them were really surprised, it made sense to them and a few had suspected it. With how many times I'd gone into battle with you lot without so much as a sword and managed to come out alive and unharmed. About two weeks later, Gwen started to lift the laws on magic. Slowly, to make it easier for the people. Gwaine came up with the idea of making me Court Sorcerer and Gwen agreed. About a month later….Gwen came to Gaius complaining about getting sick in the mornings. It's been happening for about a week or so. As it turned out, Gwen was…"

"What?" Merlin hesitated, not answering. "Come on, Merlin. Spit it out. What was wrong with Guinevere?"

"…She…she was pregnant with your child." Merlin watched carefully as Arthur's eyes widened and a mixture of emotions crossed the blonde's face. "Arthur?"

"We…we'd been trying but…I…" Arthur stumbled over every word and put his head in his hands. "I….had a child?"

"A son. William." Arthur looked up at him and smiled.

"That was my idea…" Merlin tilted his head slightly, not understanding. "We'd been trying for a few months and….one night, we got to talking about if she did conceive, what we'd name the child. The boy name we'd agreed on…was William. After your friend, Will, from Ealdor. Because he'd saved my life." Merlin couldn't hold back the small smile on his face, feeling a mixture of pride and confusion.

"But…You thought he was a sorcerer."

"One that was your friend. And died saving my life."

"You never cease to amaze me." he smiled and Luci meowed in Arthur's lap as if she agreed. Arthur wiped away a few stray tears and smiled.

"What….what was he like? My…son?"

"He was just like you. An excellent warrior. A good heart. Cared about his people." Arthur leaned back into the couch with a forlorn expression on his face, mixed with guilt.

"I should have been there."

"It wasn't your fault. Gwen managed, and she wasn't alone All of us were there for her."

"But he deserved to know his father. To have a father figure in his life." Merlin looked down for a moment.

"He…did have one." Arthur looked up at him suddenly. "When William was about five….Gwen…she remarried." Merlin watched Arthur's face carefully to gauge his reaction. He seemed to be thinking, several emotions crossing his blue eyes. Finally, he nodded slowly with a sad smile.

"Good. I….I…I wouldn't have wanted her to….to be alone. As…as long as he made her happy." Arthur replied slowly, running his hands over his face. "Who?"

"Leon." Arthur nodded ever so slightly.

"They'd always been close. Having grown up together…." Merlin noted that Arthur looked a bit conflicted and a little hurt, his eyes remaining down cast. Luci nuzzled his chest affectionately to cheer him up.

"He made her happy. But she never stopped loving you. Even after decades, she still missed you." Once again, Arthur nodded. Merlin wished he could do more to help him. He placed his hand firmly on Arthur's shoulder in support, much like Arthur had done for him in the past. And while they were discussing this, Merlin knew now was the time to mention what he knew. "There's something else. It's not to do with Gwen…..directly…but you should know." Arthur remained quiet for several moments before composing himself and looking back at Merlin.

"What is it?"

"It's about Margaret." Arthur's eyebrows raised slightly in a puzzled expression. "She…well she's….your descendant." The blonde stared at him blankly for several seconds.

"She what?"

"Well, William eventually had children of his own and so forth and….she's descended from your bloodline." Arthur looked at him as if he'd gone mad.

"You're sure?" Merlin nodded. "How? How could you possibly know that?"

"Freya." Merlin almost whispered before raising his voice to a normal level so Arthur could hear him. "Freya. She came to me in a dream and told me. Then I looked into it and….it's true. You're her ancestor." He explained slowly, glancing up the stairs to make sure Margaret wasn't there. Arthur took glanced upwards before looking back at him.

"Does…does she know?" He shook his head.

"No. I never told her. I'm not sure how she'd take it. It might freak her out."

"Well, yes. At first. But she should know."

"Arthur, it's not a good idea." Arthur looked almost infuriated at that as he stared at him.

"Why?!"

"She's never had a family. Not really. She only ever had her little brother and he died. I don't think she'd take it well."

"So…you're just not going to tell her? At all? She should know who she is."

"I know." Merlin reasoned. "Believe me, I know. Just….not yet." Upstairs, the sound of Margaret's door opening silenced their discussion. Both of them stared at her as she walked down the stairs. She'd noticed and watched them with a confused expression.

"What are you staring at?"

"Nothing." Arthur and Merlin stated at the same time, causing her to narrow her eyes at them before scoffing.

"Whatever." Margaret shook her head at them, walking down the hall, towards the kitchen. Merlin let out a soft sigh.

"I'll let you…get to know her better." Merlin noted, patting Arthur's shoulder before retreating to his room.

* * *

><p>Arthur slowly walked into the kitchen and dining room and felt slightly awkward as he noticed Margaret sitting at the table drinking coffee. He was still processing all that Merlin had told him and as he watched her, he looked for similarities. It did help to explain why she was like Morgana at times. But it was all rather overwhelming to be honest. He was a father, yet he wasn't. The son he never knew he had has been dead for centuries and sitting in front of him was a girl that he know knew was related to him. And in a way, his only connection to the child he wasn't there for. Perhaps he could do right by her. Be there for her, like he would've been for William.<p>

All these thoughts ran through his head as he took a seat across from her, studying her every feature. Margaret looked up at him with a small smile. Her bright blue eyes, now that he knew the connection, reminded him of his own. Arthur thought back to the car ride, when she had mentioned that she always felt a connection to the legend of King Arthur. Now he understood why. But she didn't.

"What's up?" she asked suddenly, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"Hm?"

"You look like you're thinking really hard about something."

"Oh. No, not really. Just…..wondering." he stated offhandedly.

"About what?"

"About you." Her eyes narrowed slightly as she stared at him.

"Me?" Arthur nodded.

"I….just sort of realized that…I don't know that much about you."

"Yeah." She agreed matter-of-factly and took a sip of her coffee. "Your point?" He scratched the back of his neck and shrugged, not quite sure what to say.

"Well, perhaps….we could change that? You could tell me a bit about yourself." She rolled her eyes and looked away.

"There's really not that much to tell."

"Sure there is." He tried, thinking carefully. "What's your favorite color? How old are you? What do you like to do for fun?" Arthur offered, smiling to hide how awkward and nervous he felt. No, not nervous. Kings don't get nervous. Margaret simply stared at him incredulously.

"Are you serious?" He nodded, gesturing for her to answer. She sighed dramatically. "Blue and green. 22. Reading." She listed off quickly.

"What was your childhood like?"

"Why do you care?" she asked almost angrily, becoming defensive.

"I'm just….curious. That's all." Arthur noted hesitantly.

"Well don't be." He sighed softly, running a hand through his hair. Perfect. She'd inherited the famous Pendragon temper. Just his luck.

"That….man you went out with the other day. What was his name? Jeff? What's he like?" Margaret crossed her arms over her chest.

"He's fine."

"Fine? That's it?" she nodded. "Is he nice? A proper gentleman? How long have you known him?"

"What's with all these questions?!"

"I just…..I'd like to meet him." Big mistake.

"The hell's going on? No. God, what are you, my father?" she spat out, her voice laced with sarcasm and anger. Arthur inwardly sighed at the irony of that question.

"No. I…..I'm worried that's all."

"Oh. Oh, you're worried. Oh, how sweet. Well I can take care of myself, thank you."

"I'm sure you can. But…..the three of us living here. We're like a family you know." Arthur tried reasoning but that only angered her more and quickly stood up, pushing her chair back almost violently. He tried to discern what emotions he saw in her eyes, to try and understand why she was suddenly so defensive. '_She's never had a family. Not really. She only ever had her little brother and he died._' Merlin's words echoed in his head and Arthur thought about what they meant. It was more than just a statement. There was a reason why Merlin had said it. Explain why she shouldn't know Arthur was her family. '_he died'._

"No, we're not! The three of us are not a family! We are just three people living under one roof! Nothing more!" As Margaret stormed off, it clicked. She didn't want a family. She didn't want to get that close to anyone and then lose them. That's why Merlin didn't tell her and basically ordered him to do the same. He was protecting her so she didn't get attached. So she didn't get hurt. Arthur inwardly groaned at his own stupidity for not seeing it before. For not being more considerate when asking Margaret about her life. Merlin was right, though he'd never admit it out loud. He really is a dollop head.

* * *

><p>The clouds were cast low in the sky, darkened with oncoming rain. Just another typical day in London as usual. But something felt off to Merlin. A feeling he couldn't quite describe. Like something was wrong. It put him on edge. Everything made him jump. Arthur had immediately noticed and had asked him what was wrong.<p>

"It's just a feeling." He'd responded offhandedly, not wanting to worry him too much. Margaret hadn't left her room since last night after her argument with Arthur. Merlin had heard the end of it due to her yelling and did his best to ease Arthur's guilt over it. He wasn't to know she'd blow up at him like that so he wasn't entirely to blame. It was better to just leave her alone to cool off.

So Merlin decided to take Arthur out of the house for a while. There was a park about five minutes walking distance that he liked to go to every now and then. And Arthur loved the idea of seeing the park. After breakfast, Merlin knocked on Margaret's door to let her know they were going out. With nothing but her irritated reply, he and Arthur headed out.

Despite the dark skies and slight drizzle of rain, it wasn't too cold outside. They passed a few neighbors who were walking their dogs or checking the mail who said hello to them. Arthur was especially happy that they were walking rather than taking the car. He still wasn't used to it and Merlin knew it would take a while for Arthur to be completely comfortable in a motor vehicle.

Five minutes later they arrived at the park. It was relatively empty, save for a few teen couples were too occupied snogging to notice them. Merlin had simply rolled his eyes at them while Arthur stared in shock. In Camelot, couples were never that intimate in public. Not in that time. Merlin did his best not to laugh as Arthur tried to understand the 21st Century.

They sat down on a bench that was underneath a thick canopy of trees as the rain came down a little harder. A few of the teenagers had scurried off to avoid getting wet while others braved it out.

"I really messed up, didn't I?" Arthur spoke up suddenly.

"Probably should've avoided calling us a family." He smiled softly and Arthur nodded.

"Yeah. But it's true."

"It is. But it's still a sensitive word for her. I know she's been getting somewhat close to you over the last week but she doesn't want to. Margaret….hates getting close to people. Makes it easier for them to hurt her." Arthur looked over at him sadly.

"Curse of the Pendragon's. Hurt the most by those we care about." Merlin frowned slightly, knowing what Arthur was referring to. Margaret was hurt by Marcus' betrayal and her brother's death because of it. Arthur had been hurt by both Morgana and Agravaine's betrayal. He knew how she felt.

"It would seem that way." Merlin agreed sadly. Looking around he noticed that everyone else in the park had left. He was about to say something when a man in a black hoodie walked up to them, his hands in his pockets. Merlin couldn't see his face, but he felt uneasy by his presence. "Can we help you?" he asked suspiciously.

"Yeah. Give me all of your money." He ordered in a thick cockney accent.

"Excuse me?" Arthur asked, standing up to try and intimidate the man. It didn't work. Instead, the hooded thug pulled out a gun and aimed it at Arthur.

"Now."

"Arthur…" Merlin warned as the blonde took a step closer to the thug, not showing any fear. When neither of them showed signs of backing down, Arthur made his move and Merlin's world came crashing down. It all happened so fast. Arthur moved to grab the gun when four shots rang out in the air. The rain was pouring now, drenching them both as the thug ran off and Merlin caught Arthur, carefully lowering him to the ground. Blood flowed over Merlin's hands as he pressed down on Arthur's abdomen, trying to stop the bleeding. His magi bubbled to the surface in his panic as Arthur paled from the blood loss and gasped for breath. Spell after spell left his lips, his eyes a continuous gold as he tried to heal him but nothing was working. There was too much blood. Too much blood. Merlin barely noticed the tears flowing freely down his face as he pressed down harder on his friend's wounds, but the bleeding continued. His hands were beyond stained.

"Merlin." Arthur gasped, his breath slowing down to nothing. The light in his eyes faded away as his body became unnaturally still beneath Merlin's grip. He was gone.

Merlin woke up screaming.

* * *

><p><strong>Did I scare you at the end there? Made you think Arthur was actually dying, didn't I? I had to. It was so tempting. Anyway, that was chapter 6! Please please please please review. <strong>


End file.
